Today's a new day.

[Colin_T]

Whoops, will edit that. I thought it was thousands of acres of salamanderfish habitat. I misread it, and I will fix it. What happened at K'gari (Fraser Island), and what fish live in that island?

The salamanderfish doesn't have thousands of acres of habitat, that's why it's endangered.

During the pandemic there was a bushfire on Fraser Island and it burnt half the island. The government departments that are in charge of it and in charge of fire management in Queensland decided to just let it burn for over 6 months. I literally destroy half the trees on the island and turned it to ash. The ash polluted the lakes and the loss of trees meant fewer areas for birds to live in. The areas that were protected from fire were around the major tourist spots.

Fraser Island has a number of species of freshwater fishes (Rhadinocentrus ornatus, Pseudomugil mellis and a few other fish like gudgeons and hardyheads), and various shrimp and freshwater crustaceans, as well as a number of freshwater turtles. Most of the organisms living in the waterways on Fraser Island are found nowhere else on Earth. The Rhadinocentrus ornatus (rainbowfish) are found on the mainland Australia but they are a different colour. Pseudomugil mellis is found on Fraser Island and mainland Australia but they have been separated for thousands of years and are considered to be a threatened species.

Another issue on Fraser Island is the sand dunes move constantly and they are slowly filling up the freshwater lakes on the island. When the fires destroyed the trees, the wind had more access to the sand and the lakes have been getting filled in by sand much faster since there are no trees to slow the wind. This means the fish, shrimp, turtles and other things living in the lakes will disappear sooner than if the trees hadn't been destroyed.

Fraser Island is a National Park and nobody is allowed to take freshwater fish, shrimp, turtles, plants or anything off the island to try and breed them in captivity.

 

[Colin_T]

They're not good in my opinion and may traumatise young kids while watching these ads because of very bad, realistic depictions of cancer. I do understand that these are designed to make people healthier lifestyles, but the wrong timing may, you know, traumatise any unsuspecting young children. They might have to air them at nighttime when the kids are in bed.

Point taken, no graphic adverts about cancer on kids TV.

 

[elephantnose3334]

I fear any kid and teenager may be exposed to any (smoking, vaping, junk food, etc) health-related advertisement from the federal and state governments, and some ads are nightmare fuel to some. It's like those PSAs and PIFs back in the day. They usually depict bad and questionable stuff.

The salamanderfish doesn't have thousands of acres of habitat, that's why it's endangered.

During the pandemic there was a bushfire on Fraser Island and it burnt half the island. The government departments that are in charge of it and in charge of fire management in Queensland decided to just let it burn for over 6 months. I literally destroy half the trees on the island and turned it to ash. The ash polluted the lakes and the loss of trees meant fewer areas for birds to live in. The areas that were protected from fire were around the major tourist spots.

Fraser Island has a number of species of freshwater fishes (Rhadinocentrus ornatus, Pseudomugil mellis and a few other fish like gudgeons and hardyheads), and various shrimp and freshwater crustaceans, as well as a number of freshwater turtles. Most of the organisms living in the waterways on Fraser Island are found nowhere else on Earth. The Rhadinocentrus ornatus (rainbowfish) are found on the mainland Australia but they are a different colour. Pseudomugil mellis is found on Fraser Island and mainland Australia but they have been separated for thousands of years and are considered to be a threatened species.

Another issue on Fraser Island is the sand dunes move constantly and they are slowly filling up the freshwater lakes on the island. When the fires destroyed the trees, the wind had more access to the sand and the lakes have been getting filled in by sand much faster since there are no trees to slow the wind. This means the fish, shrimp, turtles and other things living in the lakes will disappear sooner than if the trees hadn't been destroyed.

Fraser Island is a National Park and nobody is allowed to take freshwater fish, shrimp, turtles, plants or anything off the island to try and breed them in captivity.

I was close to going to Fraser Island in our 2017 trip to Queensland, but couldn't make it in time. Why did the QLD govt. let it burn for 6 months?

Point taken, no graphic adverts about cancer on kids TV.

The '13 cancers' and 'Reverse' adverts from Live Lighter are the worst. Kids like me would not be sleeping for a week after watching these ads.

 

[Colin_T]

I was close to going to Fraser Island in our 2017 trip to Queensland, but couldn't make it in time. Why did the QLD govt. let it burn for 6 months?

No idea, the theory is they didn't care about that side of the island and were more concerned about covid19, which was happening at the time. But as far as I'm concerned, they had Fraser Island open for business as usual so they should have put the fires out as soon as they knew they were there. Basically they didn't want to spend any money putting out the fires and it has done some major damage to the island.

If you get a chance to visit Fraser Island, do it because it could disappear any time.

 

[elephantnose3334]

No idea, the theory is they didn't care about that side of the island and were more concerned about covid19, which was happening at the time. But as far as I'm concerned, they had Fraser Island open for business as usual so they should have put the fires out as soon as they knew they were there. Basically they didn't want to spend any money putting out the fires and it has done some major damage to the island.

If you get a chance to visit Fraser Island, do it because it could disappear any time.

Good point. I think the QLD govt. should be concerned about Fraser Island because of the issues you mentioned. You heard of Fraser Island dingos? They're pureblood dingos and they look similar to the mainland dingos. Did they evolve for the pure strains?

 

[elephantnose3334]

I understand that not all subjects are appropriate for the forum. So I try my best to make my thread family-friendly.

So, I'd like to go to Fraser Island because it's a great island with wildlife. I know some stuff about the island.

I remember going to Rottnest Island and seeing quokkas and I snorkelled in there. I also remember going to Windy Harbour, where our beach house is, and had a look around. @Colin_T, what was your favourite place to go to see wild fish? I like the forum here. It's friendly, and great for friendships and casual chatting. The forum is great.

I used to birdwatch a lot. Before fish, there were birds. I see birds everywhere I go.

The salamanderfish means a lot to scientists and hobbyists. I often repeat myself because I am sometimes bored. I like native fish. They're one of my favourites.

I also understand that I have an urge to talk about a few subjects. For example, freshwater fish of Australia. I do have an understanding of freshwater fish, but would like to study more about rarer species.

 

[Colin_T]

The link below is where I used to buy some of my books from. The books are written by Australian scientists and they have some really interesting stuff in. You don't have to buy books from them and a lot of libraries actually get books from there and you can borrow them from the local library (if they have it).

CSIRO PUBLISHING | Books

CSIRO PUBLISHING has an international reputation for quality educational and reference books and CD-ROMs in the subject areas of agriculture, biology, botany, forestry, ornithology, zoology, marine science, freshwater science, plant science, soil science, natural history, ecology, environment...

www.publish.csiro.au

CSIRO PUBLISHING | Marine & Freshwater: Freshwater Ecology

CSIRO PUBLISHING has an international reputation for quality educational and reference books and CD-ROMs in the subject areas of agriculture, biology, botany, forestry, ornithology, zoology, marine science, freshwater science, plant science, soil science, natural history, ecology, environment...

www.publish.csiro.au

This book here was released a few years ago and is quite good for identifying freshwater fishes of Australia.

Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes

This edited volume reviews our past and present understanding of the ecology of Australian freshwater fishes. It compares patterns and processes in Australia with those on other continents, discusses the local relevance of ecological models from the northern hemisphere and considers how best to...

www.publish.csiro.au

 

[elephantnose3334]

A now favourite subject of mine is the great big world of fishing. I missed out on doing it today because of the weather. I watched a bit of Hook, Line and Sinker on TV and they usually show how to catch game and food fish, not usually the smaller ones. I am learning and will go to Grandad's house possibly tomorrow and lend some fishing gear from him with his permission, if there are any in his house.

The link below is where I used to buy some of my books from. The books are written by Australian scientists and they have some really interesting stuff in. You don't have to buy books from them and a lot of libraries actually get books from there and you can borrow them from the local library (if they have it).

CSIRO PUBLISHING | Books

CSIRO PUBLISHING has an international reputation for quality educational and reference books and CD-ROMs in the subject areas of agriculture, biology, botany, forestry, ornithology, zoology, marine science, freshwater science, plant science, soil science, natural history, ecology, environment...

www.publish.csiro.au

CSIRO PUBLISHING | Marine & Freshwater: Freshwater Ecology

CSIRO PUBLISHING has an international reputation for quality educational and reference books and CD-ROMs in the subject areas of agriculture, biology, botany, forestry, ornithology, zoology, marine science, freshwater science, plant science, soil science, natural history, ecology, environment...

www.publish.csiro.au

This book here was released a few years ago and is quite good for identifying freshwater fishes of Australia.

Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes

This edited volume reviews our past and present understanding of the ecology of Australian freshwater fishes. It compares patterns and processes in Australia with those on other continents, discusses the local relevance of ecological models from the northern hemisphere and considers how best to...

www.publish.csiro.au

Extremely interesting! I will check them out right now. Learning is key to the fishkeeping hobby, fishing, snorkelling and fish science. Are there any other places in the country that's enduring similar problems like the WA and QLD government wildlife departments?

 

[Colin_T]

Good point. I think the QLD govt. should be concerned about Fraser Island because of the issues you mentioned. You heard of Fraser Island dingos? They're pureblood dingos and they look similar to the mainland dingos. Did they evolve for the pure strains?

Fraser Island Dingos are still pure because they haven't cross bred with domestic dogs or feral dogs (feral dogs are domestic dogs gone wild). The Dingos on mainland Australia are sometimes pure and sometimes hybrids between feral/ domestic dogs and Dingos.

It annoys the hell out of me when they kill the Dingos on Fraser Island simply because the dog has bitten someone. If people didn't feed the Dingos and stood up when Dingos approached them, there wouldn't be people getting bitten. People went onto their land, not the other way but humans just destroy everything.

 

[elephantnose3334]

Fraser Island Dingos are still pure because they haven't cross bred with domestic dogs or feral dogs (feral dogs are domestic dogs gone wild). The Dingos on mainland Australia are sometimes pure and sometimes hybrids between feral/ domestic dogs and Dingos.

It annoys the hell out of me when they kill the Dingos on Fraser Island simply because the dog has bitten someone. If people didn't feed the Dingos and stood up when Dingos approached them, there wouldn't be people getting bitten. People went onto their land, not the other way but humans just destroy everything.

So how do the dingos survive the Island's conditions? Do they need to feed on fish in the beaches?

 

[Colin_T]

A now favourite subject of mine is the great big world of fishing. I missed out on doing it today because of the weather. I watched a bit of Hook, Line and Sinker on TV and they usually show how to catch game and food fish, not usually the smaller ones. I am learning and will go to Grandad's house possibly tomorrow and lend some fishing gear from him with his permission, if there are any in his house.

Maybe your grand dad can take you fishing. If he has a house and land, he can probably teach you how to use a fishing rod and cast. I used to practice casting on my front lawn. I tied a small sinker to the end of the line (no hooks needed) and practiced my casting. I stood by the house and cast up the front lawn.

Extremely interesting! I will check them out right now. Learning is key to the fishkeeping hobby, fishing, snorkelling and fish science. Are there any other places in the country that's enduring similar problems like the WA and QLD government wildlife departments?

Everywhere in the country has problems with governments not acting to protect the environment. People are so engrossed in themselves, they don't care about a piece of bushland that might contain a family of birds or some sort of insect. They just clear land and build houses and then complain when the weather changes and floods their houses.

I was looking at google maps the other day and looked at my cousin's beach house in Guilderton. They cleared all the trees from the front and back of the property and have grass everywhere. There used to be a family of fairy wrens that lived out the back of that place and numerous other birds and reptiles but apparently they have all gone now, presumably because the trees are gone.

Tasmania has issues with the native trees dying from lack of water and more bush fires occurring for the same reason. They have a giant freshwater crayfish that lives there and it is threatened, as is all the other wildlife. Orange belly parrots and swift parrots normally nest in Tasmania during spring and summer but introduced sugar glider possums have been going into the bird's nests and killing the female parrots and babies and eggs.

Victoria has frogs and freshwater fishes like Galaxias that are struggling with the heat and lack of rainfall in winter and they are mostly being ignored.

New South Wales has similar issues to Queensland with natural waterways being poisoned by people spraying chemicals and urban expansion damaging the ecosystem.

The Northern Territory has issues with cane toads (so does Qld and the top of WA). There are groups studying them but they need way more funding and people on the ground.

The entire country (and world) is a mess with governments prioritising people over the environment and that is why we have climate change and why most species of wild plant and animal have decreased by 75% during the last 50 years.

 

[Colin_T]

So how do the dingos survive the Island's conditions? Do they need to feed on fish in the beaches?

The Dingos are scavengers that will eat fish, crabs, birds, turtles or whatever they can catch. As long as the bushland on the island remains in good condition, there will be enough food to sustain a population of Dingos. However, when the fire burnt half the island, it messed up the balance and the Dingos might not have enough food to keep going long term.

 

[elephantnose3334]

Maybe your grand dad can take you fishing. If he has a house and land, he can probably teach you how to use a fishing rod and cast. I used to practice casting on my front lawn. I tied a small sinker to the end of the line (no hooks needed) and practiced my casting. I stood by the house and cast up the front lawn.


Everywhere in the country has problems with governments not acting to protect the environment. People are so engrossed in themselves, they don't care about a piece of bushland that might contain a family of birds or some sort of insect. They just clear land and build houses and then complain when the weather changes and floods their houses.

I was looking at google maps the other day and looked at my cousin's beach house in Guilderton. They cleared all the trees from the front and back of the property and have grass everywhere. There used to be a family of fairy wrens that lived out the back of that place and numerous other birds and reptiles but apparently they have all gone now, presumably because the trees are gone.

Tasmania has issues with the native trees dying from lack of water and more bush fires occurring for the same reason. They have a giant freshwater crayfish that lives there and it is threatened, as is all the other wildlife. Orange belly parrots and swift parrots normally nest in Tasmania during spring and summer but introduced sugar glider possums have been going into the bird's nests and killing the female parrots and babies and eggs.

Victoria has frogs and freshwater fishes like Galaxias that are struggling with the heat and lack of rainfall in winter and they are mostly being ignored.

New South Wales has similar issues to Queensland with natural waterways being poisoned by people spraying chemicals and urban expansion damaging the ecosystem.

The Northern Territory has issues with cane toads (so does Qld and the top of WA). There are groups studying them but they need way more funding and people on the ground.

The entire country (and world) is a mess with governments prioritising people over the environment and that is why we have climate change and why most species of wild plant and animal have decreased by 75% during the last 50 years.

Hmm... I have an idea.. How about doing small baby steps, then bigger steps on my contribution to saving what's left in our environment. Victoria's wildlife is in a bad state (in terms of population). I'm one of a few people who care about the bush and the natural environment. I didn't realise it until now. Who cleared the trees on the Guilderton beach house?

 

[elephantnose3334]

The Dingos are scavengers that will eat fish, crabs, birds, turtles or whatever they can catch. As long as the bushland on the island remains in good condition, there will be enough food to sustain a population of Dingos. However, when the fire burnt half the island, it messed up the balance and the Dingos might not have enough food to keep going long term.

How many dingos were in the Island before the fires compared to now?

 

[Colin_T]

How many dingos were in the Island before the fires compared to now?

no idea.

--------------------

Hmm... I have an idea.. How about doing small baby steps, then bigger steps on my contribution to saving what's left in our environment. Victoria's wildlife is in a bad state (in terms of population). I'm one of a few people who care about the bush and the natural environment. I didn't realise it until now. Who cleared the trees on the Guilderton beach house?

no idea, presumably my cousin